Russia and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are locked in a diplomatic row over festivities to mark the end of World War II.
The Kremlin has invited the presidents of the three states to Moscow on May 9 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany. It has also invited world leaders including German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who would be the first German leader to attend such an anniversary in Moscow.
However, the Baltic leaders are coming under intense public pressure not to attend an event that also marks the start of the region's forced subjugation to Moscow.
The Red Army occupied the three countries during the second world war after fierce fighting with nationalists. In 1941, Nazi Germany invaded and thousands of volunteers from the Baltic states joined German units in an attempt to fend off the Soviet advance.
The era remains deeply sensitive for the three countries, not least because many residents collaborated in the Nazi massacres of Jews.
Moscow argues that its occupation liberated the Baltics from Nazi tyranny.
The Baltic countries did not break free from Moscow's embrace until the break-up of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.
For many in the three states, which have all joined the EU and NATO, the thought of their leaders bowing and scraping in the Kremlin is too much to bear. Wary of a domestic backlash, the presidents of Latvia and Estonia are considering a boycott of the celebrations.
Estonian President Arnold Ruutel consulted members of parliament last week and said his decision must "preserve Baltic unity." He said he might send Prime Minister Juhan Part, in his place in what would be seen as a snub to Moscow.
Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus has said he will not answer Moscow's invitation until it is "strategically convenient" for the country.
A poll in Lithuania last week showed 34 percent of people thought he should refuse the visit. Opposition politicians are campaigning against the trip.
President Vaira Vike-Freiberga of Latvia has agreed to travel but infuriated Moscow with the prediction that, "on May 9, Russian people will place a Caspian roach on a newspaper, drink vodka, sing folk songs, and recall how they heroically conquered the Baltics."
In Germany, opposition politicians have suggested it would be better for Schroder to avoid a parade by the Red Army, which, they say, brought about the division of Germany.
Tatyana Zhdanok, member of the European Parliament from Latvia's Russian-speaking community, said the president had no desire to attend the Moscow events but had capitulated under EU pressure.
"It would be better for her to stay at home if she does not want honestly to join the celebrations," Zhdanok said. "She will only use the anniversary as a platform to claim the Red Army occupied Latvia rather than liberating it."
In an attempt to sweeten the May 9 visit, Russia is offering to finalize border agreements and sign a declaration on shared objectives with the Baltic leaders the next day.
But President Vladimir Putin warned: "We are extending a hand of friendship. Whether it will be taken, shaken or not does not depend on us."
KINGPIN: Marset allegedly laundered the proceeds of his drug enterprise by purchasing and sponsoring professional soccer teams and even put himself in the starting lineups Notorious Latin American narco trafficker Sebastian Marset, who eluded police for years, was handed over to US authorities after his arrest on Friday in Bolivia. Marset, a Uruguayan national who was on the US most-wanted list, was passed to agents of the US Drug Enforcement Administration at Santa Cruz airport in Bolivia, then put on a US airplane, Bolivian state television showed. “The arrest and deportation were carried out pursuant to a court order issued by the US justice system,” Bolivian Minister of Government Marco Antonio Oviedo told reporters. The alleged kingpin was arrested in an upscale neighborhood of Santa
FAKE NEWS? ‘When the government demands the press become a state mouthpiece under the threat of punishment, something has gone very wrong,’ a civic group said The top US broadcast regulator on Saturday threatened media outlets over negative coverage of the Middle East war, after US President Donald Trump slammed critical headlines from the “Fake News Media.” The US president since his first term has derided mainstream media as “fake news” and has sued major outlets over what he sees as unfair coverage. Brendan Carr, head of the US Federal Communications Commission — which oversees the nation’s radio, television and Internet media — said broadcasters risked losing their licenses over news coverage. “The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will
SCANDAL: Other images discovered earlier show Andrew bent over a female and lying across the laps of a number of women, while Mandelson is pictured in his underpants A photograph of former British prince Andrew and veteran politician Peter Mandelson sitting in bathrobes alongside late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was unearthed on Friday in previously published documents. The image is believed to be the first known photograph of the two men with Epstein. They are currently engulfed in scandal in the UK over their ties to their mutual friend. The undated photograph, first reported by ITV News, shows King Charles III’s disgraced brother and former British ambassador to the US sitting barefoot outside on a wooden deck. They appear to have mugs with a US flag on them
INFLUTENTIAL THEORIST: Habermas was particularly critical of the ‘limited interest’ shown by German politicians in ‘shaping a politically effective Europe Jurgen Habermas, whose work on communication, rationality and sociology made him one of the world’s most influential philosophers and a key intellectual figure in his native Germany, has died. He was 96. Habermas’ publisher, Suhrkamp, said he died on Saturday in Starnberg, near Munich. Habermas frequently weighed in on political matters over several decades. His extensive writing crossed the boundaries of academic and philosophical disciplines, providing a vision of modern society and social interaction. His best-known works included the two-volume Theory of Communicative Action. Habermas, who was 15 at the time of Nazi Germany’s defeat, later recalled the dawn of
RSS